The Iowa Department of Human Services is encouraging recipients to budget their normal benefits to ensure they last through the month of February.

“At the Iowa Department of Human Services we understand the importance of ensuring food security for Iowans in need and will do everything we can to ensure there is as little disruption as possible,” Director Jerry Foxhoven said in a news release.

The department says it's working on contingency plans, but officials had offered no details about what's being considered to cover all or part of the $38 million Iowans receive monthly through the SNAP program should federal funding stop.

On Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, said he hopes the administration or Congress can find an answer before March 1.